It is a well-known saying that dogs are a man’s best friend. A new study in Europe has even found that dogs have been around for 32,000 years. The first dog known to be domesticated was known as Canis familiaris and descended from Eurasian gray wolves. They were originally bred by humans to assist people in hunting, but over time became a member of their family. Dogs depended on other members in their pack thousands of years ago for survival, thereby creating the mindset that in order to survive you have to be loyal with your teammates. From that ideology, they have always remained loyal to their owner and never leaves their side making them one of the best pets. They even became emotionally bonded with their human families and can read their owners facial expressions in a millisecond. Dogs’ connection with their owner has provided multiple benefits to people through a mental, physical, and social perspective. Foremost, dogs have a positive effect on their owner from a mental perspective.
Having a dog as a pet can provide numerous mental benefits for his or her owner. It is known that there is significant stress reduction in people that own a pet dog. Psychologist Alan Beck and psychiatrist Aaron Katcher conducted a study 30 years ago of the effect of having a dog on the body. Through this examination, they found signs of stress significantly reduced in pet owners. Specifically, the owner’s blood pressure decreased, heart rate slowed, breathing became more even, and muscle tension relaxed. These noticeable benefits occur after only five minutes after associating with a dog. Another study was done to further examine this theory when stressed adults were told to pet a rabbit or a toy. The feeling of touching a toy did not relieve any stress, but stroking the rabbit greatly reduced anxiety in people (including ones who did not love animals experienced this result). In effect, this demonstrates that an owner will experience a significant decrease in anxiety with simply petting their dog due to the sensation created. Additionally, the idea that one is important and needed forms through taking care of dogs. Caring for a living animal gives someone a sense of purpose and meaning in their life, therefore making it significantly less likely that depression and loneliness will form. This relationship has been discovered by scientists, leading to the formation of animal-assisted therapy. This type of therapy has benefited thousands of people who had autism, medical conditions, or behavioral issues. Also, it is useful in combating illnesses such as depression, schizophrenia, or addiction. In this type of therapy, you keep a dog at your side throughout the day for emotional support. He or she provides a sense of safety and comfort, thereby taking their owners attention away from an anxiety-ridden situation. Another positive influence that a service dog can have is that it can help create a better sense of trust in the owner and stabilize their emotions. Also, petting a dog is known to increase oxytocin (stress-reducing hormone) and decrease the production of cortisol (stress hormone). Therefore, from a mental perspective, improvement is prevalent with the ownership of a dog and can drastically help people with mental health issues. Not only can dogs make a positive different in owners mentally, but also physically.
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Owning a dog can significantly increase an individual’s physical health. Due to the responsibilities that taking care of a dog entails, one’s physical fitness greatly improves. The owner is required to take their dog out for a walk every day around the neighborhood. The importance of taking your dog out every day creates motivation in the owner to go outside and walk or run on various paths. According to a study done at Michigan State University, dog owners are about 34% more likely to walk for 150 minutes per week that people that do not own a dog. Additionally, it found that owning a dog increases the leisure-time physical activity by around 69%. In effect, the cardio benefits from owning a dog greatly increases their physical health. Therefore, this lowers one’s risk of obtaining cardiovascular disease, type 2 diabetes, and certain types of cancer and increasing an owner’s lifespan. Another benefit from a physical perspective is that owning an active dog allows you to sleep better during the night since you have been expending energy by playing with your dog throughout the day. The amount one walks is seen through a study done by Lintbells. They found that the average dog owner walked about 870 miles about every 12 months, 7 miles more than people who do not own a dog. Also, dog owners wake up at an earlier time to feed their dogs, thereby giving them a head start to their day and increasing productivity. Furthermore, dogs increase the amount of exercise their owner does, thereby helping improve their physical fitness. Not only do dogs help owners from a physical perspective, but also from a social perspective.
Dogs greatly help their owners in multiple aspects from a social perspective. Dog owners are known to be more outgoing, friendly, and funny by the whole world. Children who are attached with their dog have an easier time becoming friends with others according to research. Moreover, they develop these social skills that can positively influence them when interacting with others. A child who is born isolated, shy, and reserved will greatly benefit with owning a dog. As attachment towards a pet dog increases, there is a noticeable increase in great social skills and empathy. This occurs because of the everyday love dogs give to their family. With this unconditional love, children feel as if they have someone to depend on and builds a feeling of trust at a young age. A study done in 2013 even found that dogs can increase social interaction and improve communication with autistic children. This is due to the fact that when people take out their service dog, people are more likely to stop, talk, and become friends with the owner. In effect, the child with autism is more likely to engage with another and talk of something they love: his or her dog. Furthermore, having a dog allows more people to connect with others thereby improving social skills in owners.
Dogs are a man’s best friend and allow their owners to improve their mental health, increase their physical health, and enhance their social skills.
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